After a short historical view of religious parties in England, from the Reformation downwards; of the discordant notions entertained of Religious establishments; and of the heats and animosities which those notions had produced: he proceeds thus

"In this ferment, and in this embroiled condition, "the Author of the Alliance between Church and "State found the sentiments of men concerning re"ligious Liberty and Establishments, when he pro"posed his Theory to their Consideration: a Theory, calculated to vindicate our present happy Constitu❝tion ON À PRINCIPLE OF RIGHT, by adjusting "the precise bounds of either Society; by shewing

"

how, they come to act in conjunction; and by explaining the nature of their union: and from thence, "by natural and necessary consequence, inducing,

on the one hand, an ESTABLISHED RELIGION, "with all its rights and privileges, secured by a TEST "LAW; and on the other, a full and free TOLERATION, to all who dissented from the national "worship.

"He first shewed the use of Religion to Society, "from the experience and practice of all ages: He inquired from whence the use arose, and found it "to be from certain original defects in the very essence and plan of Civil Society. He went on to "the nature of Religion; and shewed how, and for

what causes, it constituted a Society: And then, "from the natures of the two Societies, he collected, "that the object of the Civil, is only the Body and "its interests; and the object of the Religious, only "the Soul. Hence he concluded, that both Societies are Sovereign, and Independent; because they arise "not out of one another; and because, as they are "concerned

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concerned in contrary provinces, they can never meet to clash; the sameness of original, or the sameness of administration, being the only causes "which can bring one, of two distinct Societies, into "natural subjection to the other.

"To apply Religion therefore to the service of "Civil Society, in the best manner it is capable of being applied, he shewed it was necessary that "the two Societies should UNITE: For, each being sovereign and independent, there was no other way "of applying the service of Religion in any solid or "effectual manner. But no such union could arise "but from free compact and convention. And free "convention is never likely to happen, unless each Society has its mutual motives, and mutual advan-tages. The Author, therefore, from what he had "laid down of the natures of the two Societies, ex

plained what these motives and advantages were. "Whence, it appeared that all the rights, privileges, " and prerogatives of the two Societies, thus united, "with the Civil Magistrate at their head, were in"deed those very rights, privileges, and prerogatives, "which we find established and enjoyed under our

present happy Constitution in Church and State; "The result of this was, that an ESTABLISHED "CHURCH and a free TOLERATION are made per

fectly to agree by the medium of a TEST LAw. "This Law, therefore, the Author in the last place proceeded to vindicate, on the same general principles of the law of Nature and Nations.

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"This is a true, though short analysis of the "Alliance between Church and State*."

* See Vol. XII. "View of Lord Bolingbroke's Philosophy," Letter IV.

This

This work made a great impression on the best judges. One of them, to whom he had sent a present of his book, expresses himself thus:

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"I had formerly been very agreeably entertained "with some emendations of your's on Shakespeare, "and was extremely pleased to find this work was by the same hand. Good learning, great acuteness, an ingenious working head, and depth of thought, will always please in an author, though we are not entirely in the same ways of thinking."And, in the close of it, he adds-" You have not, Sir, only my thanks for what you have done, but my "sincere wishes, that what was intended for the "service of the publick may prove also to be for

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your own, to which my endeavours, in any proper way, shall not be wanting."

This was candid and generous, considering that the eminent person was not altogether in the author's sentiments on the subject of his book. But he was struck with his great abilities, and became from this moment his sincere friend.

The truth is, no sort of men, either within or without the Church, was prepared, at that time, for an indifferent reception of this new theory, which respected none of their prejudices. It was neither calculated to please the High-Church Divines, nor the Low ; and the Layity had taken their side with the one or the other of those parties.

However, though few at that time were convinced, all were struck by this essay of an original writer, and could not dissemble their admiration of the ability, which appeared in the construction of it. There was indeed a reach of thought in this system of * Bishop Hare.

Church

Church-policy, which would prevent its making its way all at once. It required time and attention, even in the most capable of its readers, to apprehend the force of the argumentation; and a more than common share of candour to adopt the conclusion, when they did. The author had therefore reason to be satisfied with the reception of his theory, such as it was: and having thoroughly persuaded himself of its truth, as well as importance, he continued to enlarge and improve it in several subsequent editions; and in the last, by the opportunity, which some elaborate attempts of his adversaries to overturn it, had afforded him, he exerted his whole strength upon it, and has left it in a condition to brave the utmost efforts of future criticism*.

Some indeed, have taken offence at the idea of an Alliance; but without cause: for the meaning is this, That our Church-Establishment is such as in equity it must have been, had the terms of it been settled by mutual agreement between the two parties. Which, in other words, is only saying, That those terms are just and reasonable.

The idea of an Alliance was conceived, in preference to any other mode of conducting the argument, because the theory of civil government had been

* An eminent writer has delivered his opinion of it in these terms: "BishopWARBURTON, in his Alliance between "Church and Stute, hath shewn the general good policy of "an establishment, and the necessity of A TEST for its se"curity, upon principles which Republicans themselves "cannot easily deny.-His work is one of the finest speci"mens, that are to be found perhaps in any language, of "scientific reasoning applied to a political subject." Dr. HORSLEY'S Review of the Case of the Protestant Dissenters. PREF. London, 1787.

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formed on the like notion of a contract between Prince and People. This way of reasoning, therefore, without being less conclusive, had the advantage of being more popular than any other, and as such, was very properly adopted by our author.

Notwithstanding this management, the Alliance, as I observed, was not generally understood. But he did not wait for the reward of publick favour, to encourage him in the resolution he had taken of dedicating his great talents to the service of religion. In the close of this first edition of The Alliance, he announced his next and greatest work, THE DIVINE LEGATION OF MOSES; which he had now planned, and in part composed. For, when such a writer as this, has by a long course of study laid in the proper materials for invention to operate upon, and has, by one vigorous essay, assured himself of his own strength, his progress to perfection is rapid, and almost instantaneous; like the pace of Homer's gods, whose first step reaches to Olympus, and the second, to the ends of the earth.

It had been pretended by those who called themselves Deists, and, in the modesty of free-thinking which then prevailed, had, or affected to have, a respect for the natural doctrine of a future state, That the omission of this doctrine in the Mosaic Law was a clear decisive proof of its imposture, as no institute of religion, coming from GOD, could be without that principle.

The author of the Alliance saw the omission in another light; and was so far from admitting the Deist's conclusion, that he thought himself able to prove, in the clearest manner, and with the evidence of what is called Moral demonstration, the divinity of the Mosaic Law from that very circumstance,

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